In Everything, Give Thanks

The “tree of thanks” created by my grade three students!

Thankful that I was able to spend Thanksgiving with Rachel!

Rachel and I with our host brother (Jay) and host sister (Carleen) on Thanksgiving.

Ziplining!

Rachel, Sam and I before ziplining!

“Gratitude can trasform common days into Thanksgivings.”

I know that through the best and worst times, it is equally important to give thanks. Although most of my days spent in St. Lucia would be considered great, there have also been days filled with challenges. These challenges encompass the vast cultural and educational differences combined with being 2,600 miles away from friends, family and comfort. However, I have learned that some of the most positive lessons can derive from the most uncomfortable situations or times. I am most thankful for the not so pleasant and uncomfotable times that I have experienced while in St. Lucia. These are the times that I have been forced outside of my comfort zone. These are the times that I have had to utilize my strength of empathy and direct my thoughts in a completely different direction mostly through times of frustration. Once I began to be thankful for the challenges that I face, I am much more proud and recognize my daily accomplishments and growth. I firmly believe that every person and experience that I encounter is purposeful. Whether positive or negative, I must be thankful for the lesson that he\she or it has taught me. Although I did not get to spend the Thanksgiving Holiday with my family, I still made it a priority to give thanks to those who are most important to me. I was also able to reflect on, and thank those who have most recently made an impact on my life in St. Lucia. Through all of the excitement, I think I tend to lose sight of how much my host family does for me. They have completely altered their daily schedules in order to ensure that I am both comfortable and happy. It was not ideal to spend Thanksgiving, or the Friday after Thanksgiving teaching, but I was thankful to have been given the opportunity to teach my students about traditional Thanksgivings in the United States. We also created a “tree of thanks”. I had asked the students to think about people or things in their lives that they are most thankful for. I asked them to avoid writing materialistic or electronic items. I had wanted them to write and share a genuine answer. It was really great to hear them reflect on all that they are grateful for in their lives. Also, Rachel and I had still wanted to celebrate Thanksgiving, so we decided to prepare dinner for our host family. When Rachel and I returned from school, we began cooking cheesy potatoes and apple crisp. It was really nice to be able to all eat dinner together, and it definitely helped to feel at home.

Week six of school was filled with review. For each subject, my cooperating teacher wrote topics that the students would need to study for the exams. I was also able to take a look at the exam time table. The students will be having exams Monday-Thursday this week. Exams will begin at 8:00am each day, and go through 2:30pm. There are specific subjects scheduled for each 1 or 1.5 hour timeframe throughout the day. Besides state exams, I could not have imagined taking final like exams as a young student. Students begin taking the term exams as reception (Kingergarten) students! They take home their notebooks for each subject, and study the content from the entire term. They have over twenty subjects! For exams, I will serve as a scribe for one of my students who broke both of his wrists. I am very interested to find out how focussed/unfocussed the students remain throughout exams. I am also interested in performance. These end of term exams can determine whether or not a student is prepared to move onto the next grade level.

This weekend, we went zip lining through the canpoy of the rainforest in Dennery. It takes approxamitely thirty minutes to drive to Dennery, which is located southeast of Gros Islet. There were twelve total lines, and a lot of hiking involved. Overall, it was a really fun experience! As usual, we spent our Sunday morning at church and afternoon at the local beach!

 

 

Week Five!

Thanks mom and dad!

Overlooking Castries

Anse La Raye

Anse La Raye

x Soufriere

Soufriere- The Pitons!

Anse La Raye

Anse La Raye

Soufriere- The Pitons!

Overlooking Castries!

My classroom!

Mud and Sulphur baths!

The Toraille Waterfall

The mud bath!

My classroom!

My classroom!

My classroom!

Rachel, Sam and I at the Sulphur Springs

The Sulphur Springs

The Pitons!

With our host mom overlooking Castries

Subject/Verb agreement relay race!

The Sulphur Springs

Subject/Verb agreement relay race!

Th Sock toss- Students had to identify whether a subject was singular or plural, and toss the sock in the correct bin.

This past weekend marked the half way point for my time in St. Lucia, and my fifth week of teaching is coming to a close. This week has been the most difficult yet, as the children’s energy level is rapidly increasing with each day of added indoor recess. It has been two weeks since they have had the opportunity to release their energy outside. I really hope that the rain subsides in the near future! Rachel’s parents were here for the week, so we were able to introduce them to many aspects of the St. Lucian culture. Mom and dad also sent a few gifts and card with them! With three weeks remaining, I am getting excited about coming home for the Holidays. Surprisingly, the St. Lucians get into the Christmas spirit much sooner than most. Christmas music has been playing in stores since mid October! As it is tradition in our families back home, Rachel and I have decided that we will begin decorating our house for Christmas next weekend!

The end of the term is coming quickly! This week is the last week of introducing new content. Next week is considered review week, where the teachers will prepare the students for the end of term exams that are the following week. The school sets aside a full week for students to take the exams. This is a very busy time for the classroom teachers, as they have to write the exams for each subject, and make sure that the students are equipped with the knowledge to take the exams. The review week is solely for reviewing all of the concepts taught since the beginning of the term. My classroom teacher and I will prepare review activities for the week, and provide students with questions to study from.

I continue to teach grammar, phonics and health science, but have added general science this week. We began learning about invertebrates, and I put most of the responsibility on the students. I gave them the opportunity to research and teach the class about six of the phylums that make up invertebrates. They really enjoyed taking on the role of a teacher to teach it to the other students within the class. For grammar, we are spending the week reviewing subject verb agreement and the present tense. For review of the present tense, I created mad libs for the students, only leaving blanks within the story for the students to insert action verbs. They had a lot of fun adding humor to their stories, and found a lot of enjoyment in this activity. For subject verb agreement, I created centers for review. These centers provided the students an opportunity for movement and learning to take place. As for health science, I began instruction on common childhood diseases. Our focus was on Rubella, Measles and the Mumps. I put the students into three groups, and they read an information sheet about their assigned disease. Within their groups, they created a script for a public health announcement for the community. In the public health announcement, they were to inform the community of the disease and offer prevention tips. The children were very excited about videotaping themselves, and are looking forward to watching their classmate’s videos in order to learn about the other two common childhood diseases next week.

This past weekend, we had the opportunity to travel around the entire island on a bus. Motion sickness medicine is necessary before the trip, for the roads are winding and hilly. There were many instances where I could not look out the window as we were driving. The cliffs are very steep, and there are no guard rails. We began the trip in Gros Islet, and drove down to Vieux Fort. Vieux Fort is in the southern portion of the island, where the airport is located. Along the way, we were able to stop at many different communities, and witness many cultural practices. We traveled through Castries, Anse La Raye (a small fishing village), Canaries, Soufriere and Dennery. My favorite adventures of the day took place in Soufriere. We saw the Pitons, swam under the Toraille Waterfall, saw the sulphur springs, took a mud bath, swam in the sulphur baths and drove in the only “drive-in” volcano in the world, Soufriere.

Rachel and I also attended a parent meeting hosted by the grade six teachers. The purpose of the meeting was to inform the parents about the common entrance exams that the grade six students will be taking in mid June. There are a total of twenty-three secondary schools on the island. Each secondary school has a percent that the students must meet or surpass on the common entrance in order to be eligible to attend. With this being said, the best and worst schools on the island are easily identified. Although much simpler than choosing and applying for a college or university in the United States, their is an application process that is similar for the secondary schools. The students must fill out a form and rank their top four schools. The top three can be any that they choose, while the fourth must be a school within their zone (close to their residence). Based on the students exam scores, the form that they filled out will determine the school that they will attend. Before taking the exam, the grade six students take many field trips to tour the schools. This gives the students an opportunity to not solely focus on the academic aspect, but to also consider the comfort that they may or may not feel at certain secondary schools. I have gotten the impression that the student’s parents preferences, or school that they attended plays a large role in the students decisions. Many of the most successful individuals on the island have attended the most prominent secondary schools. The top schools are also often prioritized by employers. I feel that this exam puts a lot of pressure on grade six students, as it determines much of their future endeavors at such a young age. The students attend secondary school for Form 1, Form 2, Form 3, Form 4 and Form 5. For us, this would be considered grades 7-11. For students looking to continue their education, after Form 5, the students usually attend a two-year school. After the two-year school, the students will go onto a university. Many of the students in St. Lucia will either attend the one University in St. Lucia, or a university on a different island in the Caribbean.

As my fifth and most challenging week of teaching comes to an end, I continue to be grateful for this experience. Although I will be ready to come home in three weeks, I have gained knowledge that will only assist me in becoming a better person in my future endeavors. I look forward to what week six has in store!

Taking Time to Notice

 

 

The not so simple task of noticing has been made possible by this dreary day. Today I have realized that the insight gained when you simply take the time to notice your surroundings can be quite pleasing. Thus far, if I could only take one learning experience back with me, I think all of the St. Lucian’s would agree that it is an essential part of life to take time to notice. By notice I mean really taking the time to become invested in each and every moment of the day. All too often, my days are rushed, and I find myself looking ahead to future endeavors. With this, I lose sight of the happenings in the present, and fail to recognize my gradual improvements and achievements. Little to no time is spent noticing the little things that happen from day to day. For the rest of my time here, I am making it a priority to notice more. On this rainy day, (there is nothing to do when it rains) I spent a little time noticing the little things about my daily life here and the culture. Here is what I came up with:

 

1. I wake up each morning anywhere from 3AM-5AM to the sound of many wild roosters outside of my window. Although at first it was an annoyance, it has become a more natural alarm than my phone.

2. I wake up in a sweat to a sunlit room, only to check the temperature to find that it is already 85 degrees at 5AM.

3. I brace myself for the cold, yet refreshing shower each morning. Although the water pressure is lacking, and it is a good day if I am able to rinse all of the shampoo and conditioner from my hair, I am grateful to have running water and the opportunity to shower each day.

4. I do not have to apply makeup each morning to feel ready for the day. Makeup products are rarely worn here. Although this might seem minuscule to some, it is a great accomplishment for myself. It was an uncomfortable transition at first, but it is refreshing knowing that makeup doesn’t need to be worn daily in order to increase my confidence and sense of beauty.

5. I sleep with the windows open, fan on and no covers in mid November.

6. Time spent with family after a long work day is time to be treasured. Eating traditional meals and listening, dancing and singing to traditional St. Lucian music makes for a great bonding experience.

7. I often walk around the community of Gros Islet, and find that all residents sit outside of their homes conversing with all who happen by or live near. Their friendly personalities are to be envied. If only I witnessed this type of interaction at home more often!

8. I have the ability to walk down the street, and be completely surrounded by the beautiful Caribbean Sea. As I watch and listen to the waves, I realize that these people have been blessed with this beauty so close to home each and every day.

9. I have the opportunity to observe the happiness and kindness portrayed by all community members. This is regardless of whether or not their home is one bedroom with a floor made of dirt, and built out of wood with a tin roof.

10. I do not have my own vehicle, so I must rely on public transportation (a bus that is more like an extended van. There are no specific times for buses to arrive at bus stops. Drivers come and go as they please.) and my host family. It is rare for individuals to own vehicles on the island. The public transportation is utilized often.

11. Time is not of the essence. The phrase “a little while” is equivalent to the duration if three or more hours. Each person moves at his/her own pace, with little attention payed to punctuality. It is not a lack of motivation, but rather a means of avoiding becoming overwhelmed and remaining relaxed. This is where the noticing comes in. They take time to notice the small happenings and their surroundings each day.

12. I have the luxury of drinking fresh squeezed juice from the cherry and golden apple trees in our backyard. St. Lucians take great pride in their many local juices.

13. I understand that the horns and hazards can be used for much more positive and productive measures. The horn is used for offering thanks, informing other drivers that you are coming around the sharp corners and/or steep hills that make up much of the landscape, and simply saying hello. The hazards are used for vehicles to inform other drivers that they are letting them turn in front of them.

14. There are no speed limits, road signs or lines to divide the road. They drive in accordance to what is courteous, and what they believe to be safe. There is a lot of responsibility put on the drivers.

15. At a gastation, you never get out of your car to pay for or fill your own tank. An attendant is waiting at each pump to take your money and insert the gas. Oh, how wonderful this service would be in Wisconsin during the winter months.

16. I do not start each day with coffee, but am able to persevere through the school day regardless!

17. Teachers leave kind gestures such as mangos and avocados on each other’s desks to show a sign of appreciation for one another.

18. At school, attendance, snack and lunch count is taken manually with a pen and paper. Teachers do not have their own computers, and there are not projectors or Elmo’s in the classroom. There are not speakers in each classroom, instead all messages are passed along from one teacher to the next using a clipboard.

 

As I prepare for my fourth week of teaching, I cannot believe how fast time is going.  I am forming such great relationships with the teachers at the Montessori Centre, and they are always concerned about my well being. They always ensure that I am comfortable, and have everything that I need to feel at home. It is comforting knowing that I have such a big support system while I am here. It definitely assists in keeping my mind off of home. During planning on Wednesday afternoons, the teachers are always sure to ask for my input. They appreciate that my teaching mindset falls strongly on explicit modeling. They are always interested to hear my ideas for re-teaching and modeling concepts that the students may not have grasped the first time. The various perspectives often make planning sessions long, but I am always able to leave with new cultural perspectives and ideas.

This week, I will be adding on health science. The focus of my lessons will be caring for your teeth. I am excited for a few activities that I have planned, and am hoping that parents will begin returning forms so that I can release and post pictures of my students during my lessons! As for grammar, I am still teaching verb tenses. We will be reviewing subject/verb agreement and I will be introducing the simple present tense and the present continuous tense. In phonics, I will be reviewing consonant blends. Although it is the first time that the concept will be reintroduced in grade three, it is definitely not the first time that they have been introduced to consonant blends. Therefore, my lesson will consist of a simple introduction and explanation, and then an activity for practice with pronunciation and known words that have “l” blends.

One last thing. I never shared my students weekly schedule. One major difference is that there are many different classes throughout the day that would normally be incorporated into one single class. The classes are usually only held once or twice a week. I never know which class is coming next, and I probably never will before I leave! Here is a list of the classes:

1. Assembly (every Monday morning, the various grades put on a skit based on the theme for the week, and many songs are sung. Assembly provides the students will a great opportunity to participate in something with the entire school coming together.)

2. Grammar

3. General Science

4. Spanish

5. Phonics

6. Health Science

7. Literature Circles

8. Comprehension

9. Football(soccer)/track

10. Writing workshop

11. Composition

12. Library

13. French

14. Spelling

15. Music

16. Technology

17. Stations

18. Class meeting

19. Social Studies

20. Mathematics

 

 

 

 

 

Lack of stability, increased adventure!

Pigeon Island

Sam, Rachel and I.

Pigeon Island- at the top of the fort!

Pigeon Island

Pigeon Island

The market in Castries.

Pigeon Island- at the top of the fort!

Castries

The market in Castries.

Gros Islet Street party

Gros Islet street party

Pigeon Island

Pigeon Island

Sam, Rachel and I.

Pigeon Island- Climbing to the top of the fort.

Pigeon Island

It is hard to believe that I have been living in St. Lucia for more than two weeks now. I would be lying if I said that I didn’t have a countdown for when I come home. It’s not that I am not enjoying myself, I certainly am. It is just that I am a person that is much more comfortable with stability, and my flight home is the only confirmed event in my life happening within the month. My time here is a quarter of the way through. With each day, I am becoming more accustomed to the culture and traditions. Rachel and I have been blessed with a wonderful host mother and family, who are willing to drop everything to ensure that our time here is well spent. Each morning as our breakfast is prepared, each family member asks if we are doing fine. I have learned that the words fine and okay are equivalent to the words good and even great back home. This was difficult to get used to at first, because in Wisconsin the response fine and okay would have a more negative connotation than positive. It is very interesting how words can have different interpretations based on location.

This week I am still teaching grammar, but have also added phonics. My grammar lessons will be an introduction to verbs, and we will begin to look at verb/subject agreement, the simple present tense and the present continuous tense. I have never taught an entire unit on verbs before; therefore, I have not realized how much content there is to teach about this part of speech. Verb usage has become such an engrained part of life for me. It is often difficult to go back to square one, and teach correct usage in the simplest and most effective manner. A verb is a very complex part of speech, and there are so many different tenses and rules that have to be applied. Although I am not the most comfortable with teaching verbs, it will be a good learning experience. As for phonics, I am reviewing consonant digraphs. We focused on the five consonant digraphs that are used the most often (th, ch, ph, wh and sh). We will look at the consonant digraphs that make the beginning, medial or final sound in words. I have centers planned for practice with saying the sounds that each digraph makes, reading words with the digraphs in the different positions within words, and writing words with the digraphs. I have also realized that grammar and phonics are two very difficult subjects to teach with the two very different dialects.

My teacher has been very supportive and offers a lot of feedback after my lessons. She often leaves post-it notes on my desk with words of encouragement as well. It is very motivating, and helps me to stay positive throughout the day regardless of how I think my lesson may have gone.

Here are a few differences in regards to the school day:

1. School officially starts at 8:00am, but students arrive anywhere between 7:30 and 8:00. Teachers must arrive before 7:30, and provide the students with morning work to be completed.

2. Teachers have no prep time throughout the day! We supervise during specials since coaches and teachers from the outside come in to teach sports and elective classes. The teachers are responsible for classroom management and supporting the students with their learning. There is a time for snack and recess from 10:00-11:00, but the teachers spend the hour reviewing, and giving lessons (tutoring) to the children falling behind. As for lunch, the students set-up their lunches and eat in the classroom.

3. Dismissal is at 3:00. Children wait in the classroom for their parents to pick them up directly from the classroom anywhere between 3:00-3:30.

4. They bring in horses that get tied to the trees to cut the grass of the school yard.

5. They have tire swings and the children are allowed to climb trees. The children have more of an opportunity to “be kids”.

6. There is a large emphasis on student problem solving. If there is an argument or physical altercation, the children must work it out amongst themselves. There are no incident reports or referrals.

7. Intervention systems, IEPs and pull outs do not exist. There is a special education teacher who pushes in for some subjects to support a few students throughout the day.

8. The teachers are placed under a lot of pressure to prepare the students for high stake exams that determine which schools they are eligible to attend.

9. The standards are not as clear as the common core. There is a lot of interpretation involved. This makes writing lesson plans very difficult, as it is not very clear what is most important for the students to know before entering each grade level.

10. The majority of the teachers teach lessons (tutoring) after school and on the weekends, and the majority of the students attend lessons after school and on the weekends.

I have come to the conclusion that as a teacher in the United States, I will NEVER complain about not having enough prep time! These teachers do all of their lesson planning, correcting and prepping outside of the school day.

This past weekend, Sam stayed with Rachel and I and got to experience the community of Gros Islet. Friday was spent at the Gros Islet fish fry on the bay, and at the Gros Islet street party. On Saturday, we took the bus to the market in Castries with our host mother. Castries is the capital of St. Lucia. The market is filled with fresh produce and homemade crafts. We saw a lot of historical sites, and were able to try a roti for the first time. A roti is a tortilla filled with potatoes and chicken. It was very good! On Sunday, we went to church and spent the day at Pigeon Island National Park. We climbed to the top of the hill which is a fort, and were able to overlook a portion of the island.

I am looking forward to teaching my remaining grammar and phonics lessons this week. I will continue to be thankful for this learning experience, as I am recognizing more growth in myself as an educator as each day passes. By completely immersing myself in a culture very different from my own, I will have many new ideas and perspectives to bring into my future classroom!

Jounen Kweyol!

Pigeon Point Beach

Roasted breadfruit!

Cooking some of the traditional Jounen Kweyol foods.

Monchy for Jounen Kweyol celebration.

Monchy for Jounen Kweyol celebration.

Monchy for Jounen Kweyol celebration.

Rachel, Sam, and I dressed in a traditional Jounen Kweyol skirt.

Rachel and I with our host mom.

Jounen Kweyol celebration at The Montessori Centre

Monchy for Jounen Kweyol celebration.

Monchy for Jounen Kweyol celebration.

Monchy for Jounen Kweyol Celebration.

Gros Islet infant and Primary School

Pigeon Point Beach

Jounen Kweyol celebration at The Montessori Centre

This has been a busy week, filled with many Jounen Kweyol celebrations. Jounen Kweyol, otherwise known as “Creole Day”, is a festival to commemorate the islands’s cultural heritage. International Creole Day is on October 28th, but is celebrated on the Sunday before. Many of the larger towns on the island are chosen to host festivals. During this time, there are many traditional foods offered. Some of the most common include: pemie (a corn flower sweet cake), green fig, salt fish, breadfruit, smoked herring, avacodo pear, and bouillon (a type of stew served with pork or lamb), floats (deep fried bread), Accra (a fried dough that contains salt fish), Cocoa tea, golden apple juice, and Guava juice. St. Lucian’s also dress in traditional clothing and dance to traditional music. The women wear a colorful plaid skirt with a white top that is embroidered with flowers.

Last week was a short week of school. The children had a midterm break, so the Jounen Kweyol celebration was held on Wednesday at school. The teachers and children put on a show for their parents and community members. The children worked very hard for many weeks to prepare traditional dances and modeling of traditional clothing. They also spoke of the cultural significance of the celebration of Jounen Kweyol. On Wednesday morning, I was able to help the teachers plan and prepare some of the traditional dishes for the parents and community members.

On Thursday, we were able to observe at the Gros Islet Primary School, the school that my host mom is the principal of. Although very similar in teaching practices, the student body and environment differed greatly. The main reason for this is that the Gros Islet Primary School is a public school, whereas the Montessori Centre is a private school. I am still getting used to the teacher centered instruction, and writing my lesson plans accordingly. Eventually, I hope to take my cooperating teacher outside of her comfort zone, and teach a lesson as I would in the United States. Another challenge is the limited amount of resources. I am very excited to see how creative I can be in the presentation of my lessons, based on the resources available here.

On Friday, we returned to the Montessori Centre for a workshop. There was a woman from New York that came to St. Lucia to do an interactive presentation on the Montessori principle, along with the importance of incorporating movement within the classroom. From this workshop, I was able to gain new information about Montessori schools.

The weekend was very busy! On Friday, my host mom took Rachel and I to the Rosalie street party. The street is blocked off, and there are many vendors that are set up selling food and drinks. There is a lot of dancing, and is an attraction for tourists. We spent the day at Pigeon Point Beach on Saturday, and enjoyed a relaxing day by the sea. The scenery was beautiful. On Sunday morning, we went to Monchy for mass, and spent the day at a Jounen Kweyol festival. After Monchy, we returned to Rosalie, and spent the night on a hill overlooking a large portion of the island with more Jounen Kweyol celebrations.

I am still adjusting to the culture differences, especially “island time”. There have been many instances where I stepped back, reevaluated the circumstance, and realized that life doesn’t always have to be as fast paced as I am used to back home. It has really given me time to relax, and think about all that I am grateful for in my life, especially this teaching opportunity in St. Lucia. Today I  began my first day of teaching grammar. I was much more nervous about my lessons than I was in my first placement. The stress on academics is very high here, as the children take high stake tests to determine which secondary school they will attend. My lesson on irregular adjectives in the comparative and superlative went very well, and I received a lot of positive feedback. My cooperating teacher was excited to inform the other third grade teachers how I presented the material, and even implemented some of the classroom management techniques that I used during the lesson. I am excited to see what adventure this next week will bring as I continue to teach grammar!

oh, and the question that never fails to be asked when I tell the children that I am from the United States: “Teacher Morgan, do you have Ebola?”

My first few days!

I have safely arrived in St. Lucia!

My third grade classroom!

My traveling began early Sunday morning, as my plane left the Outagamie Airport at 5:50am. As expected, my suitcase weighed well over 50 pounds. My flight to Atlanta was two hours with a forty-five minute layover. This was my first time traveling alone, so I was worried about the short lay over in such a large airport.  Of course, the plane took off thirty minutes after expected because it is Wisconsin, and they had to defrost the plane. Although landing was later, I made it to my gate with ten minutes to spare before take off. From Atlanta, it was a 4.5 hour flight to Hewanorra Airport in St. Lucia. I was the only female on the plane that wasn’t wearing a sweatshirt labeled bride, and didn’t have my hair in tact from my wedding the night before. The conversation of the flight attendants and pilot solely revolved around weddings, honeymoons, and anniversary celebrations. I was very relieved to make it through customs after an hour of questioning and searching my suitcase.

Richard, a parent at the school that I am teaching at picked me up from the airport. It was a 1.5 hour drive from the Hewanorra Airport to my host family’s home which is located in Rodney Bay. The airport is located at the southern part of the island, while my house is very far north. Therefore, I was able to see the majority of the island. The drive confirmed the astonishing beauty of the island. I have never been exposed to so many breathtaking sights before. He was extremely friendly, as are all of the people that I have met here, and gave me a tour of the island during our drive.

I arrived to my host family’s home around 4:00pm. They were sure to welcome me with open arms, and showed me around the house. Our host mom, Ms. Paula St. Luce is a principal at a public school within the community. She has a 16 year old daughter, Carleen. Ms. St. Luce’s brother and 15 year old son also live in the house. Rachel and I have our own apartment in the downstairs portion of their home. The apartment has two bedrooms, a bathroom, kitchen, and living room. We are very blessed to have such a wonderful and caring family, along with great living conditions. The apartment does not have hot water, but the cold showers are refreshing.

Monday was my first day of school at the Montessori Centre. The school is located very close to our home, it is only a few miles away. For now, we are given a ride each morning at 7:30, but starting next week, we will be walking or taking public transportation. The Montessori Centre is a private school, that abides by the Montessori principles. The school has two campuses that are separated by pre-primary and primary grade levels. One is for toddlers, reception (kindergarten), and grade one. The primary campus is for grades two through six. The Montessori Centre is the most expensive school on the island, and all of the families are upper class. A few differences that I have noticed thus far in regards to school in the United States and St. Lucia is the parent involvement. The parents of the students at the Montessori Centre are very present in their child’s academic endeavors. They parents drop off and pick up their children each day at the door of the classroom. There is no bussing for the children. This promotes strong relationships between the teachers and parents. They encourage the teachers to assign homework, and ask questions in regards to the current content upon drop off and pick up.  Another difference is the teaching styles that are used. In the United States, the majority of the schools that I have been in are hands on and student centered. At the Montessori Centre, the teaching is much more teacher directed. The teacher lectures, as the children take notes in their notebooks. Classroom management techniques are also very different. The students at the Montessori Centre are held at high standards, and are very well-mannered. They use more redirective and verbal reprimand strategies, opposed to positive reinforcement. Another difference is the amount of subjects that the children have each week. The scheduling will take a while to adjust to, as the subjects are different each day of the week. The children are offered Spanish, French, phonics, grammar, tennis, swimming,  vocabulary, etc. which are rare to see incorporated into a classroom in the US due to the strong emphasis on the common core and math, science and language arts. A last difference is the classroom environment. There are very minimal resources, and the environment is not print rich. It is very eye-opening to see the teacher’s approach to delivering the content effectively without all of the technology and materials that we use in the United States to deliver the same content.

In general, here is a list of some of the cultural differences I have recognized:

1. The obvious one, St. Lucian’s drive on the left side if the road. This is very difficult to adjust to.

2. While driving, they use the horn for giving thanks and positivity.

3. The lifestyle is very laid back. Time does not mean as much as it does in the United States.

4. The language is a mix of French Creole and English.

5. The children refer to the teachers as “Teacher —-” based on their first name.

So far, my experience in St. Lucia has been so wonderful. I am grateful to have been given this opportunity, and I cannot wait to continue to learn more about my students and the culture of St. Lucia.

The Beginning!

With my departure less than a week away, it is difficult to believe that I have been at Green Bay Early Learning Center for almost seven weeks! Although I am excited and looking forward to my teaching adventures in St. Lucia, it will be difficult to say goodbye to my Kindergartners and cooperating teachers. They have taught me so much in regards to my future endeavors as an educator, and I am grateful to have had such phenomenal role models and students. As I prepare to leave for St. Lucia, I am excited to gain a different cultural perspective on education. I will be teaching in a Montessori school, which will be different that what I am accustomed to. I am most excited about being able to take all that I have learned from St. Lucia, and incorporating it into my future classroom. Six more days, and I will be on a plane to the beautiful St. Lucia for seven weeks!